1. Technical Field
This disclosure image forming apparatuses, and in particular, to image forming apparatuses having a printing head for ejecting liquid drop.
2. Discussion of the Background Art
There is an image forming apparatus that forms an image on a medium, such as a printing medium, a transfer medium, a printing sheet, a transfer sheet, etc., by adhering printing liquid to the medium during conveyance of the medium using a printing head unit having one or more liquid ejection heads that eject liquid drop.
The image forming apparatus is capable of forming an image on a medium, such as a paper, a string, a texture, a fabric, a leather, a metal, plastic, glass, wood, ceramics, etc., by ejecting liquid thereon. Such an image forming apparatus provides the medium with not only a meaningful image, such as a character, a figure, etc., but also a meaningless image, such as a pattern, etc. Such a liquid is not limited to a printing liquid or ink and includes the other types of a liquid as far as they can realize image formation. The liquid ejection apparatus is capable of ejecting liquid from a liquid ejection head, but is not limited to that forming an image.
In an example of an image forming apparatus having a liquid ejection system, a printing head is mounted on a carriage. An auxiliary tank is also mounted to supply the printing head with ink. The ink is replenished from a main toner cartridge arranged on the apparatus side to the auxiliary tank via a supply tube, such as discussed in Japanese Patent Registration No. 323689 and Japanese Patent Application Nos. 2006-015706, 2005-035032, 2005-035033, 2005-199506, 11-165447, 2000-318176, 04-129751, 2000-321351, and 04-129751.
In such image forming apparatuses, various countermeasures are taken to address problems caused by movement of the tube when the carriage moves.
However, these conventional image forming apparatuses are inadequate for preventing damage to the supply tube.